Road Cycling - How often do you guys crash? Knee probs

I had a pretty bad slam the other day, i was on my way home from work, i have damn small pedals in my roadie (LOOK clones).
Since i was in work, i had my heavy shoes on, so i started sprinting for a while, and my right foot slipped, and i was standing up, so i fell, sack first into the top tube :eek: .My hands slipped, and my head landed on the bars, i was like superman, that stupid pose, legs hanging out the back. The bike swerved around madly, i almost kept it under control, but i was going too fast, and i went over the bars (bars locked to the right and engaged front brake. I landed on the tarmac, hand first and slid for a bit, and i *think* the bike went over me. I instantly stood up, grabbed the bike and ran to the pavement, to check things out and to avoid being roadkill.

The bike was scratched here and there, the right hood was bent towards me, and both brake levers were scraped. My work trousers were ruined, the slide on the tarmac had taken care of that, both elbows skinned, knee took a bang (not good, this was already my bad knee) and both hands scratched. I felt fine, i actually found it funny (apart from the smack in the sack) and me and my riding bud couldnt stop laughing, along with passers by.

Anyway, i was wondering how often you guys crash an burn?

Plus any recommendations on the knee, the pain leaves after 10mins riding, and then ceases up again when i stop. Also when i am sitting, it constantly has to be extended or it gets real sore. Any ideas? cheers

I've been riding for over 20 years and only crashed a handful of times. It's been years since my last bingle.

See a doctor, that's what people do when they get injured.

Originally posted by late
See a doctor, that's what people do when they get injured.

Whatever happened to actually trying to help one's-self without professionals? :confused: (its not like he has a broken leg)

I have banged up my knees in numerous high speed crashes.It can be sore for weeks or days. If you can ride with no pain after 10 minutes you are probably OK. You probably just bruised the soft tissue. If you had damaged ligaments I doubt if you would be able to ride. I had one accident where the knee swelled up to almost double,they thought it was fluid and tried to drain it with a very large needle.Unfortunatley there was nothing to drain. The pain was very bad for a few days but it eventually went away. I would give it some time and take it easy, a knee wrap may help and some heat with a heating pad can do wonders. good luck.

I forgot to say that by no means should you take what I say as gospel, it is just my experience, if you feel it is bad enough please go to the docter!

In response to your other question as to how often we crash --- For me, in the past I've crashed about 3-4 times a year, usually during racing season. So far this year only once however, and I'd really really like to limit it at that if possible. I figure that the more you ride (and the more you race) the more often your going to go down, and I'd say that I ride quite a bit.

hmm, in 3 years riding i've crashed twice. that's with very little racing.

My last crash was in 84 and since then have gone over 80,000 miles without an incident; but before that I only had one other accident. Both of these accidents resulted in a shoulder seperation (same shoulder), and the one in 84 destroyed the bike and my helmet-thank God for the helmet!!! I guess I'm lucky or blessed (depending on ones perspective), because from 72-86 I averaged 12,000 miles a year.

If you are racing hard, you get clashes and wipeouts. If you are Just Riding Along, you have to be very unlucky or stupid to wipe out . Since I was 12, I have had a couple of crashes.
One car took me out at very slow speed, injuries: grazed knee.
One loose bar bag fell off and got trapped under front wheel. No injuries due to protective gloves.

Crashing is not a regular feature of cycling. You should probably wear a helmet and gloves in case it happens, and think about how you might react in a crash (keep your arms and head tucked in, and relax), but it is not an everyday event.
Riding hard with work shoes on clipless pedals counts as a bit reckless, but lots of people have done it. Standing up and sprinting hard with them counts as stupid. Bikes are pretty unforgiving of stupidity, just put this one down to experience.
See a doc, who will probably tell you to rest up, treat the knee with ice, and dont crash again.

See a doctor, that's what people do when they get injured.

To be honest, id rather deal with it myself, i know how annoying it is to have to wait for weeks for an appointment because of all the people with "bad colds" etc. Theres enough of people like that wasting time without me joining the bandwagon :D


You should probably wear a helmet and gloves in case it happens, and think about how you might react in a crash (keep your arms and head tucked in, and relax), but it is not an everyday event.

When im out on an 'official' cycle, i always wear my gloves and helmet, but short runs into town and to visit friends, i usually leave it off. To be honest, i think i did rather well to react to the crash, and i admit it was my own stupidity to get into the situation in the first place.:) Anyway wasnt as stupid as my friends crash a few days back, a bee flew into his T-shirt, and he tried to get it out and went head first into a hedge :p

The pedals are the main reason im in the market for a good beater/commuter bike, so i know its wrong to use them for everyday use.

How long ago was the accident? Does your knee still hurt? Do the ice/heat trick. Ice it down for 10 mins, apply heat for 10 min. This causes the tissue to expand and contract and helps increase circulation to the knee doe to the expansion/contraction of the tissues. If it still hurts after 2 weeks I would definitely go see a doctor.

I have been commuting in downtown traffic for 3 years and I crashed twice in the first year. The first one I crashed and burned, bad. I was trying to get a yellow light and a lady flew through an intersection at full speed going perpendicular to me while her light was still red. We couldn't see each other due to another parked car. We finally saw each other at the last moment and both hit the brakes hard. I ended up hitting her car sideways at the door/front fender area and totally smashed that up and shattered her windshield. I suffered bruised ribs and a trashed handlebars/stem and rear wheel. All in all I was totally lucky and am glad I was wearing a helmet. I got a sick satisfaction at trashing her car as well. Oh well, it is tough out there.

It was about 5-6days ago. It still hurts a bit, but it has been sore for a loooong time before the accident, i think it was because of a hike i was on, was pretty hard on my knees.

Cheers :beer:

I've crashed on my knees so many times mountain biking I now have suprapatellar syndrome (no cartlidge between my knee cap and knee joint) so it grinds away all the time. It only hurts walking up and down stairs (so I look like an old lady) but doesn't impede my biking so I don't care. I keep hoping I'll get over my addiction for mountain biking and trying to ride after a rain (that's when I slip on the tree roots) but I can't. I've never had a bad crash road riding though. (Cross my fingers)

Put water in a sandwich bag. Then add 25% rubbing alcohol. Put the first bag in a second bag, to avoid leakage. Put in freezer. Due to the alcohol, the bag will not freeze hard. It will be mushy but very cold, so it can conform to your knee. Wrap it around your knee twice a day for 15 minutes. Use a bungie cord to hold the bag on while you watch tv. This should help the swelling considerably. Also, you might try an Aleve or two once a day.

Originally posted by Dazza
The pedals are the main reason im in the market for a good beater/commuter bike, so i know its wrong to use them for everyday use.

Overkill. If you need to commute in street shoes, just get a pair of pedals with clips and a pedal wrench. Much cheaper than a second bike to keep up. Changing pedal is a matter of seconds.

Rich

Put water in a sandwich bag. Then add 25% rubbing alcohol. Put the first bag in a second bag, to avoid leakage. Put in freezer. Due to the alcohol, the bag will not freeze hard. It will be mushy but very cold, so it can conform to your knee. Wrap it around your knee twice a day for 15 minutes. Use a bungie cord to hold the bag on while you watch tv. This should help the swelling considerably. Also, you might try an Aleve or two once a day

wow good idea man! Ill try that out, just need to go buy some alcohol first, come to think of it, im sure that would ease the pain more ;)


Overkill. If you need to commute in street shoes, just get a pair of pedals with clips and a pedal wrench. Much cheaper than a second bike to keep up. Changing pedal is a matter of seconds
Im still in the market for a Beater, its annoying having to keep a real close eye to where my bike is all the time, plus i have MTN bike friends now too. I might get new pedals to tide me over until then man, cheers:beer:

Originally posted by trmcgeehan
Put water in a sandwich bag. Then add 25% rubbing alcohol. Put the first bag in a second bag, to avoid leakage. Put in freezer. Due to the alcohol, the bag will not freeze hard. It will be mushy but very cold, so it can conform to your knee. Wrap it around your knee twice a day for 15 minutes. Use a bungie cord to hold the bag on while you watch tv. This should help the swelling considerably. Also, you might try an Aleve or two once a day.

I concur with Dazza. I'm going to try your innovation with my future patients.(I've been suggesting a bag of frozen peas since it also seems to conform to the knees but I think your idea is better.)